Toys of Emotion
by Izumi's Apprentice
Summary: Cat Grant doesn't buy toys, but this one she makes an exception for because she can't have the real Supergirl, so this would have to do in the meantime. While she processed her feelings... SuperCat.


Disclaimer: I do not own Supergirl.

Author's Notes: ginavstheworld on tumblr had the thought of a Supergirl bear and Cat secretly possessing one, then I thought of the outfits she would dress it in, perhaps even a cat outfit for Halloween purposes, so of course, I had to write this.

Toys of Emotion

The first time she saw it was only three days after the commercial for the store release: "Heroes unite! Build a Bear has a new addition to its family. Come get your Supergirl bear now in stores nation-wide," but considering it was so much apart of who Cat was nowadays, Kara assumed it was purely a supportive and promotional thing. Even if the bear was sitting casually on her living room couch, just barely visible from the media mogul's front door. It was possibly one of the cutest things Kara had ever seen but knowing her boss so keenly, she kept her mouth firmly shut, handed the paperwork off and headed home.

The second time she spotted it was when she was told the door was unlocked and had to search for Cat in the apartment. Kara smiled as she passed the bear, sitting in the other corner of the couch from the previous time she saw it. It was one of the simpler setups though, no wig (which wasn't like Cat anyways), just the Supergirl shirt and cape, and red skirt. She noticed a new Build a Bear bag sitting on the coffee table and glancing inside she spied a pair of red boots. Kara giggled lightly to herself until she heard her mispronounced name called from the study. She hurried along to deliver the reports from the Art Department Cat had forgotten in her rush to pick up Carter that afternoon.

The third time she saw the bear it was disheveled. Its cape was cockeyed, one boot missing, the shirt pushed up and more importantly it was face-planted against the carpet. Kara knew why it was there and felt her eyes water with unshed tears. She had hurt Cat and the only way she could release that hurt was through the bear embodiment of her alter ego superhero. She felt far from a superhero though. She felt as small and weak as any human, especially because National City had lost faith in her and she had yet to regain that trust. She stood staring at the bear on the floor for several moments, bottom lip quivering. It wasn't until she heard Cat clear her throat from the study's door that Kara gulped around the lump in her throat and walked toward the smaller woman.

The fourth time...Kara was invited to the house. She wouldn't call it a date per say, but she had treated it as such in terms of preparation. She showered shortly beforehand (making sure to use conditioner), took care in her choice of outfit, settling on a yellow polka dot sundress and a light pink cardigan. She knew the cardigan was too cliché for her but it was one of the easiest ways to distinguish herself from Supergirl, but the longer she stared in the mirror, the more she decided to take a risk and removed the cardigan. She would bring it with her should it get colder later or rain, but she wouldn't wear it over to Cat's apartment. She had been attempting to wrinkle the monotony lately after all, turn a new leaf.

Kara stood in front of the door nervously. She slid her glasses down to get a quick peek into the apartment but it only made her nerves sky-rocket further. She gulped before steeling her resolve and rapping on the door twice. Her eyes closed as she listened to Cat setting a pan onto a cool burner and move into the front hallway. Kara opened her eyes as the door was opened and a hesitant smile quirked at the corners of her lips.

"Good evening, Miss Grant—Cat," she corrected, wincing at her own slip.

"Well don't just stand there, Kara. Come on in," Cat spoke sternly but there was a lilt of amusement to her tone that eased Kara's tension, if minutely. Once inside, Cat closed the door and headed back to the kitchen, assuming Kara would soon follow. Kara placed her cardigan and purse on the coat hangers near the door and slowly made her way into the apartment. It was the first time she had been able to stop and enjoy the simple majesty Cat Grant had put into the maintenance and design of her apartment. It was simple but sleek and oh so...fitting for the smaller woman.

Making her way into the living room, whose corner of the couch was visible from the door, Kara noticed the Supergirl bear wasn't remotely near the couch. She took a quick glance around the room and made her way into the kitchen slowly. Where had it...she froze on the spot, noticing the bear sitting on a clean counter of Cat's. It was wearing a white skirt, with a pink button up shirt, but it wasn't the change of clothes that stood out to Kara. It was the fact the button up was only halfway velcro-ed and underneath was the blue shirt with the red symbol visible.

"Oh, I see you've noticed my Supergirl bear," Cat's voice struck like a chord through Kara's being as she was brought back to reality. "Carter insisted that Supergirl needed a secret identity, so she got a new outfit," she added as she returned to cooking their supper.

Kara laughed nervously, that cute fake laugh when she's obviously uncomfortable. "Now...heh...all it needs is some glasses," she laughed again at her own joke to try and cover up her embarrassment and concern about the similarities between the bear and herself.

Cat turned from the stove to squint in curiosity at Kara. "Hmm...you're right," she agreed, opening a drawer which obviously had the cutlery inside and pulled out a spare pair of glasses (taking Kara aback briefly) before moving toward the bear and delicately setting them on its nose. She stepped back to inspect her work and nodded her head. "Excellent idea, Kara. Thank you," Cat said, walking over to the stove once more.

Stunned. That is what Kara Danvers was currently. Stunned by this strange dance she and Cat had been doing since forcing her to reveal herself on the balcony. She was nervous, no, she was almost certain that even with J'onn J'onzz's help Cat was still implacable in believing that Kara and Supergirl were one and the same. The conversation about Barry being 'The Blur' was clue enough to worry Kara and that was just a few weeks ago. Surely this couldn't be a good sign.

"Supper's ready, dear," Cat announced, standing by the table with a hand on her hip. Kara shook her head and turned around, the second time that night brought back to the present with Cat's help.

"She's very pretty," Kara commented lamely, hoping to hide the fact she was staring in disbelief at the bear. She came to the table and and sat down, brows furrowing slightly at the slightly larger than she expected portions available. Cat placed a single piece of porkchop on her own plate and the two thicker slices of meat on Kara's before settling and serving herself some rice, watching her guest out of the corner of her eye. Kara scooped out a few good portions of green peas before moving the dish toward Cat and retrieving the rice for her own plate. She was attempting to refrain from taking too much food and blowing her cover because she needed to consume more calories thanks to her genetics.

Cat didn't seem to take notice, or if she did, she didn't say anything about it, simply diving into conversation about Kara's plans for her new position at CatCo. What she wished to pursue if she had decided.

"I think I want to be a reporter," Kara admitted after contemplating her answer while she chewed her most recent bite of porkchop. She felt mildly uncomfortable because it looked like Cat had finished her meal already and was focused fully on her former assistant, causing the young woman to blush with the scrutiny.

"Oh?" Cat murmured. "Why is that?"

"Well...I...I hear of so many good deeds in National City that get overlooked by Supergirl's heroic acts and I really want to bring that to the forefront of the media. To show that anyone can be a hero and that the world can be a better place one person at a time, if we all stepped up and helped out," Kara spoke was such adamant pride that she only just noticed the look of awe on Cat's face. "What?" she asked in a quiet voice.

"You were the one who inspired them, Kara," was all she said, causing Kara to flounder for a reply, mouth gaping open and closed like a fish's.

"I...I had nothing to do with that, Miss—Cat. I don't know what you're talking about," Kara laughed so falsely even she wouldn't believe it if she were in Cat's position.

"Of course you did...Supergirl Kara Danvers," Cat replied, standing from the table to retrieve the Build a Bear and plop it on the table in front of Kara. "What is your Kryptonian name, by the way?"

This was by no means proof of her being Supergirl and Kara sat in silence trying to process her next move. But all she wanted to do was fully open up to the only person who saw all sides of her person. Cat saw her as Kara Danvers, the shy fledgling writer trying to find her way in the world as she struggles with the day to day grind of normal life, and as Supergirl the heroine this city needed who is terribly lonesome without her cousin or family by her side. Cat knew things about Kara and Supergirl that not even Alex knew. She had even come to Cat one late night at CatCo and admitted that she was suffering from night terrors of late.

She couldn't bring herself to tell Alex because she was often a prominent player in those terrors, both when Kara was under the influence of the Red K and when Alex was under Myriad and attempted to kill her. They had even talked about throwing Cat off of the building as much as Kara feared discussing it. It was heart wrenching painful and yet she knew Cat would understand, would know just what to say to make things better. She always did, Kara realized just then. Since J'onn's help with the Supergirl impersonation, Cat had been relatively subtle with hinting at Kara's secret identity with both her personas, respecting Kara's decision to keep her secrets close.

"Zor-El," Kara breathed out, the weight her body was holding released in an instant. Her world lit up and she felt herself blinking back tears. Cat's hand rested upon her cheek and brushed back a single tear from her face.

"Kara Zor-El Danvers of Krypton and Earth. _The_ Supergirl..." Cat trailed off, a ghost of a smile playing on her lips. Kara stared up at Cat, glancing back at the Supergirl Kara bear. Cat watched her as her smile bloomed further. "Did you really think I was that gullible, Kara?"

Kara sighed, reveling in Cat once again correctly pronouncing her name. She was certain her former boss had known her name the entire time they worked together as it was always 'Kara Danvers' on invitation lists and important documents, such like the time she picked Carter up from school.

"Why did you mispronounce my name all those years?" Kara asked in a small voice, leaning her cheek into Cat's hand, noticing for the first time how soft her skin was.

"An old tactic picked up in order to instill authority and respect, a way of...distancing one's self," Cat explained, pausing awkwardly in the middle of her sentence. Kara's eyes opened to study Cat curiously. Why had she stuttered?

"Why distance yourself from me? You already knew I was a good assistant before you started flubbing my name," Kara said with less hurt than the first time. She was digging and she didn't even care if her subtlety was in short supply.

Cat was taken aback by Kara's brazen attitude this evening. Granted, perhaps it was due thanks to them finally settling on the fact that Kara was indeed Supergirl. Perhaps...Cat owed it to her to return the favor. Trust Kara. She looked to the side, her thumb absentmindedly stroking Kara's cheek. "Because I knew you were going to be trouble for me. I knew...what I felt in those first few weeks could become dangerous so I figured if I distanced myself that perhaps those feelings would diminish and go away," she admitted quietly, her throat closing up as nerves overtook her briefly.

"What feelings?"

Emerald met cerulean finally and for the first time in knowing Cat, Kara saw fear of rejection in those beautiful eyes. She decided to stand up, mildly disappointed Cat had dropped her hand, and placed her hands on both of Cat's cheeks.

"I knew I was in love with you during my second month working for you, Cat," Kara admitted in Cat's stead, her blush prominently apple red. Then she leaned in and kissed Cat with all her heart's desire and passion, showing her how much she truly loved the older woman. "I think...you feel the same way," she whispered, resting her forehead against Cat's.

"I do..." Cat murmured as though not saying it full volume would make them any less powerful. That kiss was electrifying but not in a Leslie becoming Livewire electric, but beautiful and magnetic and so... _right_. Though she had set up this little revealing event, Cat felt a wave of fear shoot through her body at the line they had both crossed just now. It was obvious Kara didn't have an issue with her age (for the moment) but the fact they were employee and boss would be an unavoidable issue and she already knew how important this job was to Kara. Could guess just how normal it made the superhero feel having something to do besides rescuing mankind. But they could work through that if things continued.

Emerald eyes met sparking sapphire and Cat never felt more safe or comfortable in her life. Things would work out. "So does this mean we're...dating?" Kara asked in that quiet unsure voice so often heard in the office.

Cat laughed. "Only if you want," she said, only to be met with another passionate kiss as a response. Oh...she could _definitely_ get used to that.


End file.
